Portillo’s Inc. (NASDAQ:PTLO) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Portillo’s Inc. (NASDAQ:PTLO) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have given a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $7.50.

A number of analysts have recently commented on PTLO shares. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $6.00 price target (down from $8.00) on shares of Portillo’s in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $7.00 price objective on Portillo’s in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on Portillo’s in a report on Friday, March 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $5.50 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research began coverage on Portillo’s in a research note on Monday, March 9th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Portillo’s in a report on Monday, December 22nd.

Portillo’s Trading Down 3.7%

Shares of NASDAQ PTLO opened at $5.18 on Friday. Portillo’s has a 1 year low of $4.41 and a 1 year high of $13.55. The stock has a market cap of $391.14 million, a P/E ratio of 19.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.75. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $5.54 and a 200 day moving average of $5.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Portillo’s (NASDAQ:PTLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.03. Portillo’s had a net margin of 2.64% and a return on equity of 3.93%. The business had revenue of $185.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $185.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Portillo’s will post 0.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. acquired 286,000 shares of Portillo’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $5.18 per share, for a total transaction of $1,481,480.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 416,250 shares in the company, valued at $2,156,175. This trade represents a 219.58% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Portillo’s

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State of Wyoming increased its position in shares of Portillo’s by 176.6% during the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 2,893 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Portillo’s by 135.8% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,495 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in Portillo’s by 37.6% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,973 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Portillo’s during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Portillo’s by 5,110.6% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,858 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 8,688 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.34% of the company’s stock.

Portillo’s Company Profile

Portillo’s, Inc operates a fast‐casual restaurant chain best known for its Chicago‐style menu, featuring Italian beef sandwiches, Chicago‐style hot dogs, char‐grilled burgers, salads, crinkle‐cut fries and hand‐spun milkshakes. In addition to its signature sandwiches and dogs, the company offers a selection of desserts—including its famous chocolate cake and frozen custard—as well as catering services designed to bring its Midwestern flavors to corporate and social events.

The company was founded in 1963 by Dick Portillo, who opened the first Portillo’s in Villa Park, Illinois.